As the Lost Ones Cry
by Sulfur Dusk
Summary: — SEQUEL to WTJS — One year has passed since Rukia escaped Rukongai Asylum, but there is no time to relax. With her sister in prison and her brother's murder unsolved, Rukia is pitted against an even greater evil lurking in the shadows. To face this, she must seek the assistance of the most dangerous person she has ever met... Toushiro Hitsugaya. :HitsuRuki:


**A/N: HEY EVERYONE! I know that a lot of you are… most likely extremely angry with me. Pissed off. Ready to throw virtual food at my virtual face? I wouldn't be surprised. And I'm terribly sorry for being so absent from the BLEACH fandom for so long. I was supposed to post the **_When the Jailbirds Sing _**sequel MANY months ago. High school graduation, college crap and other extremely important things going on in my life right now set me back. **

**HOWEVER, I finally managed to finish the god-freaking-damn outline for this story, and I am very happy to announce it's official publication. This is the first chapter, and it will introduce some of the more… well, you'll just see for yourself. It's going to have a very different tone to it than the other one, since it involves a lot more mystery and possible action, and of course… ROMANCE!**

**Hooray! HitsuRuki! :D **

**And yes, this story is rated M. Mostly for language for now, and possible violence in the future, mature subject matter, and maybe… well, you'll see. But that's still debatable. For the most part it's kind of a balance between T and M, so some readers will be fine.**

**So, I'm done ranting. After spending **_**many a night **_**trying to think of a freaking title, I finally decided on this one. SO, without further ADIEU…**

**READ AND ENJOY! **

**Oh, and please don't forget to leave a review on your thoughts of this prologue. I would very much love to know what you guys are thinking… so please enjoy and I hope to read feedback on a lot of you soon! :)**

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**Title: **_As the Lost Ones Cry_

**Rating: **_M_

**Genre: **_Suspense/Mystery/Drama/Angst/Hurt/Comfort/Action/R omance_

**Pairing: **_Toushiro Hitsugaya x Rukia Kuchiki_

**Setting: **_Alternate Universe_

**Disclaimer: **_Disclaimed_

**Summary: **_SEQUEL to _When the Jailbirds Sing. _One year has passed since Rukia Kuchiki escaped Rukongai Asylum and sent Hisana to prison, and now, more than anything she feels she is getting nowhere with solving the mystery of her brother's murder. On top of these complications, she must come to terms with a new, more dangerous threat looming on the horizon, and in order to uncover the secrets of these new enemies she must join forces with new friends, old flames, and the most dangerous person she has ever met… the psychopath that escaped alongside her, Toushiro Hitsugaya. But will getting over each other's differences open a gateway to a new destiny? And is love a part of it?_

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**Chapter One**

~ _One Year_~

* * *

"I must say, Toushiro, your progress really is astounding! And by astounding I mean that you make the best breakfasts. Ever."

Matsumoto's adoring words made the white-haired individual stiffen in surprise and bashfulness. The woman was sitting at her dining room table, wearing a loose green bathrobe and allowing her recently showered locks of strawberry blonde hair to cascade over her shoulders. She smelled like ripe plums; a scent that truly drove the specialist's client insane. He hated that smell, and it was one of the reasons why she loved to bathe in it and taunt him with the things he despised.

It was part of her "therapeutic" approach, and that was what the government wanted. After Toushiro Hitsugaya, the man in question, escaped Rukongai Asylum in a much-publicized scandal, he was given to Matsumoto Rangiku to look after and treat. She was one of the most intelligent doctors in this area and prided herself with her abilities, but strangely enough, Toushiro had not believed a single word she said to him when they first met one year ago.

She was just so… humorous. Outgoing, lazy, a lot of things. Part of her rather distinctive personality made her a very interesting and infuriating person. She made him do certain chores around her house, but only if she believed it to be necessary. She thought that having a rather obsessive-compulsive patient living under her roof was the perfect opportunity to give him her housework. She _did _pay him for it… he wasn't her slave.

He walked over to the table with two plates topped with hash browns, poached eggs, individual slices of avocadoes and strawberries, (since Matsumoto just _had _to be so fucking high-maintenance) and diced tomatoes.

"Must you always comment on my cooking abilities in the mornings?" Hitsugaya glowered; gradually starting to cut open an egg before the woman across from him could say anything.

Matsumoto tilted her head to the side and smiled genuinely. "Well, I'm just impressed, is all. Do you remember cooking a lot before you were sentenced to the asylum?" Asking these questions around him made him more comfortable talking about the asylum, and since it was a full year after his escape; the doctor believed it was necessary to make it a regular topic. He wasn't going to heal if he kept bottling up his memories and refusing to tell anyone about them. "Because, I would not be surprised if you were."

Hitsugaya pondered this. For a split second, something shadowed passed through his teal eyes, but he remained distant with his mental information. He took a bite of an egg and swallowed. He turned to the woman. "I have no recollection of what happened before… the events that placed me there." And this, for the most part, was true.

"Ah." Matsumoto chuckled, staring down at her food with a risen eyebrow. "I won't fall over poisoned from this, will I?" She smirked at his shocked, insulted expression. "Oh, relax, Toushiro. I'm only pulling your leg." He rolled his eyes at her childishness and continued to eat. "Do you have a sense of humor at all? I would hate to live in a humorless world."

He tried to ignore her, but every time he struggled. Why was it that someone as boisterous, loud, and extroverted as Matsumoto Rangiku could also be so insightful? That just made her even more frustrating.

But Hitsugaya would have been lying to himself if he didn't like her. She sacrificed several things for him, and that included the very space in her house. He learned to be grateful of her hospitality, despite the shortcomings of being interviewed in her actual office space twice a week. But when they were actually in her house, she was a totally different person, dropping the professional mask and becoming the very person that made him want to pull his hair out and smirk in amusement at the same time.

He _did _have a sense of humor. Somewhere inside. Maybe.

"Careful. You'll hurt yourself for thinking too much." Matsumoto chuckled at his grave expression. "Oh, come on! You never laugh. I haven't even seen you crack one genuine smile. You'll smirk but you never smile." The woman's gaze turned apologetic. "If I brought something up that angered you or pushed some bad memories to the surface, please remind me. I would hate to be the cause of your terrible mornings…" she smirked slickly. "Grumpy pants."

And just like that, the mood shattered. And Hitsugaya knew that she wouldn't bother to pick up the pieces.

"I spent twenty minutes making those damn eggs. You should eat them while they're cold."

Ah, yes. That same, irritatingly large chip on his shoulder that would have cracked Matsumoto's temper if she weren't so focused on his psychosis. This man was by far one of the most interesting people she had ever encountered, and his reasons for being stationed under her care for three full years made her see just how different he was.

He always seemed… detached, different than everyone else. He became less abrasive over time but he had not softened up yet. He still reacted brashly to some of her jokes and retorted rudely to some things she said that really weren't that important. He was still dealing with quite a lot, and it was still her job to find out exactly what was eating at his mind.

Matsumoto sipped her coffee and turned to glance back at the television. The news broadcast was still the same. Nothing unusual, just yet.

Her eyes softened. There was one thing.

"Is that her?" Matsumoto asked, drawing Hitsugaya's attention from devouring his hash browns. The doctor turned back to him, her eyes carrying an unusually serious undertone. "The girl you talk about, I mean. Is that her? Because, if it is, I can help you contact her."

The girl she was referring to was still on the television broadcast. She was talking to a news reporter, and she honestly didn't look any different from the day she escaped the illegal Rukongai Asylum project with Hitsugaya. His hand slightly tightened around his fork, but he remained focused on the screen, studying the girl. Analyzing her.

He never forgot her name. Rukia. Rukia Kuchiki.

And as he mentally recalled, she still resembled the same girl. She was still thin, with the pale Kuchiki skin and the raven-black air that wisped at her shoulders. She had a distinctive face, a constantly determined expression on her youthful features, and the largest, most expressive violet eyes that the man had ever seen.

He considered her beautiful. But she looked tired, troubled, and yet, still relieved after the course of events that occurred.

The news reporter was nodding in her responses, but he asked another blurred question that caught the two housemates off-guard.

"_Have you found any more details to the murder of your older brother, multimillionaire and entrepreneur Byakuya Kuchiki?" _

Hitsugaya's brow furrowed. He faintly remembered Rukia telling him something about that, about her brother's demise. But it was only hours before their escape did she realize that it was cold-blooded murder. He knew that, whatever she had been doing for the past twelve months, it involved trying to find out what happened to her brother.

Rukia hesitated on the screen, her eyes downcast.

"_Well… Mr. Nichi, I can say that I am still trying to uncover clues and figure out what happened during that night. But, I don't think I'm going to talk about the details on television. I'm sorry." _

But she wasn't. She looked… insulted?

Matsumoto whistled breathily. "I like her. Such a spitfire! Her interviews are always interesting, but I would have no idea what that would be like, to lose the one person that mattered to you so much in those kinds of circumstances." She paused and secretly glanced towards Hitsugaya, who was so entranced by the screen that he hadn't paid any mind to her words. She shook her head and smiled. "Have you talked to her at all since your escape?"

The question snapped him out of his stupor and he stared at her in surprise. "What?"

She frowned. "Well?"

He glared. "What do you think? I live here with you. Wouldn't you have noticed if I randomly left and went to see her? I don't even know where she lives."

"I said _talked_, Toushiro, not _saw_." The coy doctor was playing with him again. He knew that she enjoyed questioning him, especially over the goddamn dining room table.

"No, I haven't," he replied curtly, staring back down at his food. His stomach churned, but he decided that his appetite was thoroughly diminished. "Why does it matter?"

"Because she interests you. She holds an important role in your life. She did help you escape, didn't' she? From what you've told me so far about your experiences in the asylum, she was the critical point that kept you going." Matsumoto stood up from her seat and grabbed her plate and coffee mug. "I'm going to save this _amazing _food for later," she quipped, smiling at the light tint of red touching the man's features. "And you have the rest of the day to yourself, so… maybe it'd be a good decision to get some fresh air?"

Hitsugaya glowered, his elbows on the table and his chin resting in the palms of his hands. "You know how well that would go over."

"Just take a walk. Enjoy the breeze. It's supposed to be really nice outside for the next several days. At least take this opportunity while you still have it." Matsumoto shrugged. "I'm going to get dressed and leave for work."

He rolled his eyes. "I am a grown man, Matsumoto. I can manage myself."

She shot him a surprisingly cold, important look. "Now, we _both _know that you can't risk that. You can be taken from under my care with a snap of some officer's fingers if you do one thing out of line."

He frowned. "I could never forget those rules." His brow furrowed. "I promise."

She shrugged and resumed to her delightful (and incredibly annoying) self once more. She adjusted her bathrobe and started walking up the polished staircase to her bedroom. "Alright then, as long as we have that covered. See you soon!"

Hitsugaya stood up from his seat, his hands shoved into his pockets. A lot had changed about him over the past year, and for the most part, he was secretly very grateful to this strange, outgoing doctor. But another part of him ached, and longed, for a sense of closure.

He knew that not everything was totally right yet. And that feeling would not go away anytime soon. Glancing at the television screen once, he knew that his suspicions would eventually come true.

Rukia was linked to these suspicions as well, and he was not going to be able to let that thought go.

* * *

_Stupid reporters. Stupid news cameras. Stupid men that think they can ask any question however and whenever they goddamn want._

Rukia folded her arms across her chest, staring across the paved sidewalk, the tiny cluster of finches pecking at the ground, and the rousing clouds of autumn leaves chipping off branches and hurtling in the opposite direction. Normally it was a very serene sight to see, but she was too angry and occupied with her other thoughts to pay too much attention.

It had been one full year since she escaped the Rukongai Asylum… or, what it was supposed to be. It was nothing but a project that revealed fake illusions, a strange madman and a plethora of secrets that confused the woman the more and more she thought about it. For months she tried to piece everything together, but she knew she wouldn't be able to.

She refused to even think about her adopted sister Hisana anymore. She sent that crazy woman to jail after what she did to her, but that alone was not enough of a reason.

_She had something to do with it_, Rukia thought, _she must have_. The night of her brother's murder was still shrouded in mystery, but she knew that Hisana had played some part in Byakuya's removal. She had plenty of motive… to inherit the dowry, and to make Rukia's life utterly miserable since she would have the wealth all to herself.

But something told Rukia that Hisana was not the cause.

_Maybe I just shouldn't trust my gut anymore. _She smiled slightly to herself. She was smart enough to know that she had to solve this murder herself, since the authorities believed she was just chasing shadows and that the culprit was already behind bars.

Still, she needed to—

"Hey, midget!"

Rukia turned her head at the familiar voice, and struggled to suppress her frown. Running towards her, dressed in warm clothes like she was, with his hands shoved in mittens and everything, was Ichigo Kurosaki. Of all the people that escaped with her, he was the easiest to get along with. Even then, they bickered and joked and laughed, and Rukia knew that he was a genuine person that respected her for her past and for what Hisana had done to her.

She smiled as he came up to her, still handsome and still boundless with energy. Normally he would be scowling, but one corner of his mouth was turned upwards to indicate a smile.

"Haven't seen you in… well, a while." Ichigo sat down on the bench beside her, the casual air between them slightly surprising her.

"Yeah," Rukia replied, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "What are you doing out here, anyway?" She looked at him with a risen eyebrow. "I mean, I was out here for an interview for the news, but you?"

Ichigo shrugged. "Just wanted to walk. It's cold, but it's sunny still." He leaned back against the wooden material. "It's been nice, these last few months."

"Oh, that's good," Rukia said. She didn't really know what else to say to that. Were they considered friends? Even after everything they went through, it wasn't like they shared coffee together every morning or anything. In fact, she barely recalled talking to him about his hobbies or interests at all.

"Yeah." Ichigo scratched the back of his neck. "Have you found anything regarding your brother?"

Rukia's fingers curled at the question. She sighed, and shrugged in annoyance with herself. "I should. But I can't seem to find anything. The police won't help; they think my sister did it without a doubt. And honestly, I wouldn't be surprised, but something just tells me that she wasn't the only one responsible." It could have been more than one person. Easily.

Ichigo frowned pensively at this. "Well…" He pondered. "Maybe, you could go visit her?"

Rukia blinked at him; her eyes told him she thought he was crazy. He resisted the urge to laugh at her lack of word use.

"Okay, well… what's wrong with that?"

"I finally got rid of her. And I don't think she would say anything useful to me, even if I promised her all the money in the world. She hates me. I probably hate her more, but who knows?" Rukia shook her head. "I just want to get her face out of my head."

"But you probably won't be able to," Ichigo whispered, his eyes clouding in memories, as if he himself was dealing with a situation that he wasn't voicing to her. "I think that it would be good though. If she does have something to do with it, maybe you can convince her to tell you whatever she knows."

"But she won't just hand it over." Rukia shrugged. "I… don't really want to talk about that right now."

He dipped his head. "I understand." He rubbed his thumbs together, glancing up towards the smooth gray sky. The autumn weather was more of a preparatory season for the bitter winter, and it failed to look as promising as the Hallmark greeting cards proposed.

He chuckled at the thought and suddenly stooped to a frown. "Are you living alone?"

Rukia nodded. "Yes." She shivered from a cold draft. "I can manage on my own." She smirked at him. "I _can _take care of myself, despite my size."

"Oh, sure." Ichigo rolled his eyes in a playful manner, and for a second the girl felt her heart skip a beat. Was he…?

No, no.

She read that wrong. Ichigo Kurosaki did not seem like a flirtatious person, and he clearly only saw her as a close comrade and a friend. There was no reason for him to go out of his way to try to get her attention.

_You're thinking too much into this. _Rukia told herself. _You have to focus on trying to solve Byakuya's murder. Even if Hisana could be the killer… you can't take any chances. _

"… So yeah, we're throwing this party to celebrate our escape."

Rukia blinked. "Huh?" She turned to him with a risen eyebrow. "Sorry. I was zoning out. I didn't hear a single thing you just said."

Ichigo paused, frowning. "You okay?"

"Never been better," Rukia drawled sarcastically. Ichigo smirked at that, but he dipped his head in an apologetic manner.

"I was just saying that Renji and I are trying to get you and Orihime together with us to celebrate our escape. Wait… that kinda came out wrong." He blinked and groaned at Rukia's estranged expression. "Okay, okay, that sounded bad. Basically we're throwing a party… kind of, and we were wondering if you and Orihime wanted to celebrate with us."

She realized that he was purposefully leaving one last person out of the mix. His name hadn't rung in her mind in a long, long time, but it remained there, deep in the corridors of her conscience, clawing at her and telling her to remember him. The man dubbed as a monster in Rukongai Asylum, when they all believed it existed.

"Why not Hitsugaya?" Rukia blurted, catching her tongue and allowing her eyes to widen at her own words.

Ichigo blinked. "Are you joking?" He chuckled, hoping that he was right, but at her face he realized his mistake. "You know how that guy is. Plus, isn't he on this weird parole thing right now? Even if we _wanted _to get this guy to come out and join us, which we _don't_, it'd be impossible."

Rukia sighed. "I don't really care, I'm just… I was just curious." She shook her head. Why did she care? It wasn't like she and Hitsugaya were close friends or anything, or friends at all. But there was this strange bond they had, something palpable, something there that she couldn't exactly describe.

She did not resent him at all, despite his gruesome past. Maybe that was just a stepping-stone to understanding the unusual human being.

"Yeah, well…" Ichigo shrugged. "He's crazy. Legitimately. And yeah, Orihime is an emotional basket case, but she's not dangerous." He frowned, knowing that Rukia already knew all of this information. Smiling in a friendly manner, he decided he wanted to change the subject back to normal. "Renji and I live in an apartment complex downtown, if you end up wanting to come. I can give you the address."

She blinked and tried to smile. "We'll see about that."

The carrot-top ruffled her hair and stood up from the bench. He already seemed more content than from before he started talking to her, and a pure glimmer of relaxation warmed his chocolate brown eyes. Rukia once found those eyes very interesting to look at and to dive into, but now they seemed so ordinary compared to others. It wasn't a coincidence, just a change in her mentality; or so, she suspected.

"I'll see ya 'round then, Midget." He jogged off, his hood pulled over his head as the push of the winds grew faster and stronger. They died down after the orange-haired teenager turned the corner, but Rukia still felt like he was there, sitting next to her and speaking nonsense.

He was a comforting—and aggravating—person to have around. After that annoying interview with the news reporter, she felt like she could have listened to anyone and felt relaxed afterwards. But having Ichigo there especially was comforting, but that offer he made… part of her was irritated that he would exclude Hitsugaya so willingly and quickly, and another part of her agreed with him and realized just how dangerous the white-haired individual truly was.

Toushiro Hitsugaya _was _dangerous. There was no other way to put it.

She stood up and started walking in the direction of the bus. She didn't own a vehicle since she sold Hisana's car in order to pay off the expenses she made to the Rukongai Asylum project. Taking the bus was an easy way to the park, especially if she needed to be interviewed. She basically threw on whatever clothes she could find, slipped into whatever shoes she could barely make out in the morning, threw on gloves, a scarf and a jacket and was out the door and dashing toward the bus.

The only problem was that she had to walk. It wasn't exhausting, and normally she liked taking walks by herself, but everyone in this area seemed so… suspicious, almost, as if their identities were cloaked in shadows and she could only see them if she was barricaded from them. It was an odd concept, but Rukia embraced it nonetheless.

She looked straight ahead toward a gathering crowd of reporters and viewers, tons of civilians interested in the newest story. They would forget about her interview within the next day, she was sure of it.

But then she froze. Standing there, only twenty feet away, with the same, sickly frightening smile adorning his lips, was Gin Ichimaru.

Terror gripped her stomach and heart and flip-flopped them until she turned slightly dizzy, but she could not look away. He was just… standing there, unmoving, just smiling sickly, and the people moved around him like they didn't care that the sleaziest creature in the universe was in their path.

She felt the pounding of blood in her ears, the fight-or-flight response triggering rivers of goose bumps along her flesh. Finding her conscience once more, she blinked. Just once, but it was enough.

And he was gone.

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**Chilling, right? Hehehehehe… still, this story might be a little scarier than the other one. Lots of angst and dark stuff and gloominess, but hopefully a lot of awesome stuff too. Just, you know, lots of stuff! :D**

**Remember to please leave a review! PLEASE! Yes, I am begging at this point. Incredibly pathetic, I know. :3**

**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter to this sequel! **

**THANK YOU EVERYONE AND STAY TUNED FOR CHAPTER TWO!**

**- Sulfur Dusk**


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